5.08.2017 Daily Links

The tangible dimensions of contemporary tragedy, which—we should be absolutely clear embodies the likely incineration of some billions of human beings, so that within minutes they become irradiated bubbling boiling splatters of fat, while in the aftermath of the initial surge of mass collective suicide the rest of humankind vomits its guts out and wastes away and dies out within weeks—both unfold on a day-by-day basis in every community on Earth and include an aspect that is easy to overlook as a key material element of today’s cataclysmic potential, to wit the reduction in linguistic capacity, essentially the decimation of sets of abilities that for the past few centuries have been trending upward but which now much more frequently than not exclude even a basic comprehension of such key parts of language skill as the ability to understand and use appropriately the parts of speech that characterize lingual legerdemain: that nouns designate something—some place, someone, or some idea; that adjectives amplify and otherwise delineate and demarcate nouns; that verbs permit the connection and relationship and intertwining of any and all nouns of interest, so that every possible improvement and every possible solution is plausible intelligently to evaluate, will ultimately serve as a cornerstone of accurate human understanding and effective social action.

This Day in History

Today around the world is both World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day and a Time of Reconciliation and Remembrance for Those Who Lost Their Lives in World War Two, while in Europe this is Victory-in-Europe-Day; after widespread plunder and looting accompanied Visigoth invasions of the Italian Peninsula one thousand six hundred four years ago, Emperor Honorius issued an edict that proffered tax abatements to provinces that particularly suffered in the mayhem; one year more than a century and three-quarters later, in 589, Visigothic rulers in the Iberian Peninsula elected at the Council of Toledo to join with Catholicism and Roman hegemony, at the same time that they amplified and expanded restrictions on and repression of the Jewish population of Iberia; MORE HERE

Quote of the Day

With what is he concerned? Drawing was at its lowest ebb; it had to be restored. Looking at these nudes, I exclaim, ‘Drawing has come back again!’
As a man and painter he sets an example. ‘Degas‘ is one of those rare masters who could have had anything he wanted, yet he scorned decorations, honors, fortune, without bitterness, without jealousy.

Numero Uno—“It would probably be difficult to point out any two words, respecting the proper use of which political economists have been more divided, than they have been concerning the two words productive and unproductive; whether considered as applied to labour, to consumption, or to expenditure. MORE HERE

psychotropic OR psychedelic OR psychoactive drugs OR substances OR plants culture OR society OR custom cause OR "contributing factor" OR attribute OR effectuate "altered consciousness" OR "altered state" OR "getting high" OR "getting stoned" lsd OR psilocybin OR mescalin history OR orgins evolution OR natural

A Counterpunch look by an insightful commentator on a common media practice: “The dominant media sometimes has the decency to distinguish between the “left populism” (democratic socialism) of an Evo Morales (Bolivia’s Indigeneous and ecosocialist president), a Jean-Luc Melenchon (the ecosocialist French presidential candidate) or a Jeremy Corbin (the left leader of the British Labor Party) on one hand and the “right wing populism” of a Trump, Le Pen, Wilders, or Steve Bannon on the other hand. But the makers of this distinction fails to understand that “‘Populists of the Right’ are fascists. Their goal,” Wasserman writes, “has a clear definition, as put forward by the term’s originator, Benito Mussolini: ‘Corporate control of the state.’”

A Mark Mason blog look at the possible creative utility of being non neurotypical: “If we consider that the nature of being extreme translates into both big risks and big rewards, then perhaps “mental illness” is one of nature’s ways of making a risky bet and hoping it will pay off.

It’s like Mother Nature waltzes into the casino every now and then and bellies up to the roulette table to lay all of her money down on double-zero. If she hits it, the payout is big (with someone like an Isaac Newton, who ironically, never married or had kids, but increased the reproductive fitness of humanity for centuries after he lived). But if she comes up with nothing, then she ends up broke and looking to sneak into the all-you-can-eat buffet without being noticed.

But there’s another evolutionary angle to this: and that is that some tendencies of mental illness, in certain situations, may have been beneficial in the roving tribes of our ancestors.”

A Poynter look at different subscription models that will help journalism thrive, and contextualization for the change: “During the first quarter century of the commercial internet, digital journalism has already gone through three eras: the portal years, the search years, and the social years. Each era advanced storytelling and presented new revenue streams, but I would argue that digital journalism is now entering its most exciting period yet.

Think of this as the stories as a service era, where journalism will be paid for by readers, for readers.”

A UE Union article that contetualizes the roots of this holiday: “The roots of May Day as a workers’ day of protest and solidarity go back to Chicago in 1886. But May Day has been a festival for working people since long before that. May Day was a holiday for the peasants of Europe going back to ancient times. The name of the month itself comes from the goddess Maia, who to the ancient Greeks was the mother of all the gods, even Zeus. May Day was a celebration of spring, of planting, of nature’s reawakening after winter, a feast of rebirth and fertility and love. May Day was celebrated with food and wine, music, and dancing around the Maypole.”

An Evonomics look at a common problem of out time: “In one of these countries live members of what Temin calls the “FTE sector” (named for finance, technology, and electronics, the industries which largely support its growth). These are the 20 percent of Americans who enjoy college educations, have good jobs, and sleep soundly knowing that they have not only enough money to meet life’s challenges, but also social networks to bolster their success. They grow up with parents who read books to them, tutors to help with homework, and plenty of stimulating things to do and places to go. They travel in planes and drive new cars. The citizens of this country see economic growth all around them and exciting possibilities for the future. They make plans, influence policies, and count themselves as lucky to be Americans.”